Spicy Diamond Cuts Recipe | Masala Namak Pare

Spicy Diamond cuts are crunchy tea time snacks which can be enjoyed by everyone. I should say these were the most enjoyed after school snack as a kid, my grandmother use to prepare them for us and sitting with a bowl filled with these munchy snack, watching my fav cartoon show, literally no words to explain the fun that we had! There are so many variations to this snack, every region has its own way of making and call it by different names. Even back home, my amma makes it differently compared to my MIL. We call it diamond biscuits… they refer these as thukkada, whatever the name you call its, its still the best snack to munch and quite addictive with a cup of hot tea! I have already shared the recipe of Sweet Maida Biscuits  / Diamond Maida Biscuits  lets see the spicy version today. So this festival season, whip up some of this fried goodness and enjoy with family and friends. #namakpare #masaladiamondcuts

Take maida in a bowl, add red chili powder, salt, asafoetida powder, ajwain & cumin seeds. Mix them to combine.

Add ginger garlic paste & ghee (room temperature).

Make a crumbly mixture by rubbing the ghee and ginger garlic paste.

Now slowly add water and start kneading.

Knead to make soft dough ball and rest for 30 minutes. (Resting time matters, do give 20- 30 minutes, keep it covered with a cloth or plate) The dough should be soft but also little stiff.

Now divide the dough equally into dough balls. (makes 6- 8 portions depending on the size)

Lightly dust some flour and roll out like chapati. Not too thick nor too thin, about 1/8th thickness.

Use a knife or cutter and cut diagonally(vertical and horizontal cuts) to make little diamonds. Use a thin spatula 0r knife to take it out from the rolling board. It may stick a bit to each other, but its fine.

Remove them and place in a paper towel or plate.

Heat oil in a kadai, check the oil temperature before frying – pinch a little dough in the oil, if it swing down to the bottom and swings back up right away with full force, then thats the right oil temperature. Gently gather some of the diamond cuts and drop in the oil. (Keep the flame over medium) Cook for few minutes and keep turning to fry them evenly. As soon as you drop the cuts in oil they bubble vigorously.

Once done the bubbles subside and shhhhh… sounds stops. Then its all ready to be taken out.

Remove them from oil and place on a paper tissue or napkin to drain excess oil. Repeat the process for the rest of the dough and finish. (Always fry in small batches) (As soon as you remove them from oil the texture of the diamond cuts will be very soft – do not panic. Give it few minutes to cool and  once it cools completely, it will become crispy)Cool them completely and store in air tight container for few weeks.

 Notes

• Makes about 1 kg or 2 pounds
• Resting the dough for 30 minutes helps to yield good results. Sticky dough will make it impossible to roll out and remove the diamond cuts from the cutting board.
• Dough should be soft but also slightly stiff to roll them out. Too soft dough will drink lot of oil while frying.
• Adding ginger garlic paste is optional, you may skip if you don’t like the flavor. If skipping the ginger garlic paste, then the flour may drink extra water, so adjust accordingly.
• Ajwain adds flavor and also aids digestion, you may either use both ajwain & cumin or just one depending your preference.
• Always fry over medium low flame to ensure even frying and also to yield crispy biscuits.
• I’ve added kashmiri red chili powder which is mild but gives nice color. If using plain chili powder use about 3/4 teaspoon.

The Key is to fry more time in medium flame until it gets crisp.
Dough should also be stiff.